10 Star Trek Characters With Wasted Potential

Oddly enough, Travis Mayweather was a character that all too often faded into the foreground. As helm-officer aboard humanity's first warp 5 starship – the NX-01 – he was, technically speaking front and centre of the action by the very virtue of his role. That didn't mean he got much more to do than fly the ship, however.

A shame, as Travis had a fascinating background as a 'Space Boomer' that distinguished him from (most) of the rest of the crew who were from Earth. Having been born, and grown up, in space, he had a unique perspective and a wealth of experience on the matter. Even before joining Starfleet, Travis knew all about the rigours, perils, and joys of space travel – a fact to which few of his fellow cadets would have been able to boast, no doubt. His decision to join Starfleet in the first place, and the tensions that arose with his family as a result, were also brimming with potential to be explored further. Moreover, as Starfleet was beginning its expansion into the galaxy, tensions with the more established cargo fleet were starting to emerge. It would have been interesting to see how the two fleets continued to interact and resolved their differences in the years that followed. Travis would have necessarily played a vital role in such a reconciliation.

Unfortunately, all we really got were two episodes that shone the spotlight on Travis: Fortunate Son of Star Trek: Enterprise's season one in which Travis' knowledge and experience are essential when Enterprise is called to the aid of a freighter under attack by the Nausicaans, and Horizon of season two where our Ensign must return home upon the death of his father and winds up saving the day from another group of space pirates.

Travis is still crucial to the success of the NX-01's mission – especially with his piloting skills in the Expanse after the Xindi attack – but we can't help but feel that more could have been said about this charismatic character.